Breaking down barriers

from Helen

Desmond Tutu was asked once by the BBC what was the defining moment in his life. Now of course we know that he has seen so many incredible things including an end to apartheid, but he spoke of something that happened to him when he was 9. At that age he and his Mother were walking down the street when a tall white man who was wearing a black suit walked towards them. Usually if a black person saw a white person walking down the street they were expected to step down into the gutter in order to allow the white person to pass by and then they were to nod their head as a sign of respect. The white man stepped down from the pavement to allow Desmond Tutu and his mum to pass by. As they walked past the man he tipped his hat as a sign of respect to Desmond Tutus Mother. 

This of course was not just slightly but completely unexpected. The white man was an Anglican priest called Trevor Huddleston who was opposed to apartheid. Desmond Tutu remembers that on hearing from his Mother that Trevor Huddleston was an Anglican priest he knew that he wanted tobe one too and not just this but to be a man of God. 

For Desmond Tutu and his Mother the fact that someone would step outside of the expected in a way that was all about love changed their lives. They saw what being like Jesus is all about as Trevor Huddleston offered respect and changed the ways that things were done. 

It made me think of our reading from the book of Acts (10:44-48) when Peter was explaining that everyone had a right to be  baptised. 

Peter like the other disciples was a Jew who had believed that Jesus was the Messiah, the one for whom the Jews had been waiting. In doing this he and the others had been challenged about the ways they did things. They had been brought up to believe that only Jews like them had the chance to know God.The people who weren’t Jews were called gentiles and it was really hard for Peter and the others to believe that what Jesus had done for them, He had done for everyone and so when gentiles came to know Jesus they had as much right as the Jews to be baptised and welcomed into the Church.

Peter had been shown by God that this is what he was to do and it is the same as what Trevor Huddleston did for Desmond Tutu and his mother. It is almost as if all the walls that had been built up by humans as the way they thought they should live were being pulled down.

Whenever we hear of war and fighting it is because people have protected themselves and want to hide behind their walls. Gang violence is still about people threatening other peoples land. 

Walls are built to protect people from others and we can build walls to stop people bothering us, causing us trouble and worst of all we can build walls up within ourselves to protect ourselves from being hurt.  

Peter reached out because he knew the love of God in His life. God as the Holy Spirit moved in the hearts of the other Jews so that they could see that the gentiles had received God and His love. This was amazing, unheard of. The walls they had built up around themselves had been pulled down by God.

Desmond Tutu had seen what happens when the love of God changes someone’s heart so much that they can not live with the idea that one person is less than another. 

In the reading we heard from 1 John (5:1-6) we heard that when we have a rule or commandment from God it is not a burden and the reason for that is because it is always about love and freedom.

Do you remember when there used to be beauty competitionslike Miss World and they always had to say things like, ‘I want world peace and I want to love everybody.’ 

Actually without the tiaras etc. this is not a bad way for us be as followers of Jesus. We should want peace and we should love others. The moment we stop ourselves from being lovedin case we get hurt, or the moment we stop truly loving others is the moment that we stop letting God work in our lives. It is the moment when we we need to allow God into our lives to help break down our barriers. 

When we love then we reach out. God calls us to break down divides and reach out to others with love. We do this whenever we are living like Jesus would, but what of the times when we are rather happy as we are and we don’t really want people to disturb us ? People can forget who we are and we can forget to invite people to come and join us. 

This is why on Pentecost when we are inviting people to come and party with us we need to start inviting people to come to Church on that day the 20th May, so they can see what people who love Jesus and love each other are really like. This is the best way of showing the love that we can offer. 

God loves us and we love Him and there are no barriers to that love so let’s be ready to be surprised by God and His love and to surprise people with the unexpected. That unexpected being that God loves us all. For Peter he wanted others to know that there are no barriers to God’s love. Let’s break down any walls that separate us from God in our own lives,  the things we don’t really want God to be in control of and the walls that separate us from others. Let’s love because it is the only way and it is not a burdensome commandment from God as we heard in 1 John. AMEN